Social Prescribing USA

08/27/2026

BIG ANNOUCEMENT: We are pleased to join with the University of Michigan and its new Institute for Social Prescribing to announce Connected for Health: The Inaugural U.S. Social Prescribing Conference. Please join us in Ann Arbor, MI next March 24-26th, 2027 for the very first public conference dedicated to social prescribing in U.S. history!

We and our partners will have much more to say about the conference in September, but we wanted to get out a Save the Date because we couldn't contain our excitement any longer! Stay tuned for MUCH more to come on this.

08/13/2026

We are excited to see this very new research from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine focused on how prescribing small social connection activities can help prevent significant cognitive decline in those with early signs of dementia. This is an exciting development in the field and helps build the case for social prescribing within medical care. As the lead researcher, Dr. Cynthia Felix, notes,

“By linking measurable social behaviors to specific brain systems and long-term cognitive health, this work provides a biological foundation for social prescribing."

Read more at the link below:

Caption: Cynthia Felix, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh. By Phoebe Ingraham Renda As the number of people living with dementia continues to rise to an estimated 78 million worldwide by 2030, identifying practical and accessible w...

08/08/2026

Are you a health professional who wants to learn more about ?

Our next Health Professional champions Gathering is THIS MONDAY! Please join us on August 10th at 5PM PST to hear from Grace Parker from the great organization, Prescribe Outside Philly.

This group meets the second Monday of each month. Hope to see you for our August meeting this Monday!

Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88571176593?pwd=MNLKFwMA5YXC1LugFlWidJueUrazMW.1

08/06/2026

Another great milestone, this one a great segment on PBS NewsHour on arts prescribing and social prescribing in North Carolina! This terrific piece focuses on the growing body of evidence behind prescribing arts to combat loneliness. A new program in Charlotte, North Carolina, is using the arts to tackle loneliness and social isolation. Watch more below:

A new program in Charlotte, North Carolina, is using the arts to tackle loneliness and social isolation. Paul Solman reports on prescriptions for art instead of medicine for our series at the intersection of art and health, part of our CANVAS coverage.

07/26/2026

It's the middle of the Summer and we know it's a popular time to tend to gardens, whether on a windowsill or backyard. Of course, people have tended to gardens for thousands of years across cultures. Not surprisingly, a growing body of research shows that gardening is good for your health! This new piece in National Geographic discusses the evidence, trends in social prescribing here in the U.S. and abroad and what it means for...healthy gardening!

Even a few sessions a week can provide moderate exercise, sensory stimulation, stress relief, and a stronger sense of purpose.

07/14/2026

We are very interested to read this synopsis of a recent roundtable held at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. This high level gathering focused on the critical need to bridge the gap between research and action in two emerging but critically important health areas: social connection and digital well-being. We, of course, are particularly interested in the discussion on social connection (which also touched upon social prescribing) and the need for both a robust research agenda AND the need to rapidly scale programs that show initial promise before gold standard research is completed. Some of these very same issues were discussed at our own U.S. Leadership Summit on Social Prescribing last Fall (see link in comments), and we are currently focused on the finding the right balance between the increasing demand for more social prescribing programs at a time when there is a significant demand for evidence-based findings in the U.S. about the most effective approaches. It's both an exciting time and one that requires thoughtful action! Please share any and all thoughts below:

Researchers know more than ever about the factors that shape health, happiness, and well-being. Evidence linking social connection to better health outcomes

07/08/2026

We are dedicated to promoting social prescribing around the country and nowhere are these efforts more important than in the San Francisco Bay Area where many of our key staff are located. In late May, we were excited to join with Foundation for Social Connection, University of California, San Francisco Coalition for Social Connection, and Front Porch Communities & Services for a workshop on how to advance social prescribing in the San Francisco Bay Area. Today, we are excited to share the SF Social Prescribing Vibrant Communities Workshop Impact Report from that event!

The event brought together 55 leaders representing 44 organizations across healthcare, community-based organizations, research, philanthropy, government, the arts, and more to explore how we can build a stronger social prescribing ecosystem across the Bay Area.

The workshop reinforced an important takeaway: the Bay Area already has incredible community assets that support health and wellbeing. Now, the opportunity is to strengthen partnerships, build referral pathways, invest in community infrastructure, and make it easier for people to connect with the resources that help them thrive.

The momentum doesn't stop here in the Bay Area or beyond. Whether you're a healthcare provider, community organization, funder, policymaker, or advocate, there's a role for you in advancing social prescribing in your area.

Read the Impact Report and explore ways to get involved, whether you are in the Bay Area or elsewhere:

A huge thank you to MetLife Foundation for supporting the workshop and making this collaborative effort possible.

07/03/2026

Massachusetts played a critical role in the American Revolution, and battles there (Lexington and Concord) set the stage for the acceptance of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. So what better place to focus on today than...Western, Massachusetts for another great social prescribing program (how's that for a content tie-in with America's 250th anniversary tomorrow?!). This great piece focuses on a SocialRx partnership that focuses on connection and the arts. Please share it at your cookouts, BBQ or whatever you will be doing over the weekend!

It goes without saying that improving and maintaining your health, whether mental or physical, is always important

06/23/2026

We love this mention of us in this Tucson Spotlight article about the ArtsRx program at the University of Arizona! The article includes an overview of the program (a partnership with our friends at SocialRx), along with a broader look at the growth of arts prescribing and social prescribing in the U.S.! Our kind of article!

The University of Arizona wrapped up its first year of Arizona Arts Rx, a program that connects students experiencing anxiety, depression and loneliness to arts and culture activities across Tucson as a complement to traditional mental health care.

06/05/2026

PUBLICATION ANNOUCEMENT! Social Prescribing USA Executive Director (and co-founder) Dr. Alan Siegel joined noted Boston physician Dr. Barry Zuckerman, SPUSA advisor Dr. Ardeshir Hashmi of Cleveland Clinic Center for Geriatric Medicine, and SPUSA team member Serena Shapard on an important new academic article in Frontiers in Public Health on the future of social prescribing in the U.S. The piece includes data compiled from the first U.S. Social Prescribing Summit, held in New Jersey last Fall.

The article can be accessed at this link, here:

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1789606/full

The article's abstract can be accessed on our website, here:

https://www.socialprescribingusa.com/blog/frontiersarticle